Kennedy softball player Alyssa Sierra took a tumble over second base on Tatiana Mejia’s grand slam last week against El Camino Real in the Las Vegas Easter Invitational and braced for the worst.

Instead her Kennedy teammates picked her up and turned it into a galvanizing moment, a lighter memory from a momentous week for Kennedy.

“Their third baseman asked if I was OK. I was just confused,” Sierra said, laughing. “With two outs, I was running on the play and I heard people telling the ball to ‘Get out.’ I thought it had a chance of going, so I took a peak over my shoulder and tripped.

“I was hoping a lot of people didn’t notice, but the video did me in.”

Instead of focusing on Sierra’s embarrassment, her Kennedy teammates displayed the inclusiveness that the team has demonstrated throughout their season.

In fact, before they embarked on their trip to Las Vegas last week, they came up with a mantra that resonates with every member of the 19-player roster.

Every role matters.

From the punishing 3-4 hitters Tiare La Porte and Bianca Larios to the tablesetters Mejia and Sierra. The tag team pitchers Aliyah Rincon and Adreana Martinez. The pinch-runners. The players on the bench leading the cheers.

“It’s huge. We win as a team, and we need to think as a team,” La Porte said. “If I have a walkoff hit, it’s not about me, it’s about the team.

“Every person is cheering each other on. Every person knows they are important to the team. Every game, our energy gets better and better.”

It is part of the culture that Coach Craig Becker and his staff of Christian Carbajal and Stacey Fields Horvat have forged. Carbajal was the pitcher from Kennedy’s 2010 City title team.

And it is carrying onto the field.

Kennedy firmly entrenched itself as an L.A. City Section title contender by beating City rivals El Camino Real and Banning last week to make the Las Vegas Easter Invitational final last week.

Kennedy coach Craig Becker, a 25-year coaching veteran, said his team strengthened its case for a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the City playoffs after its Las Vegas performances, especially since Banning beat Granada Hills..

“Banning was a big game for us. El Camino Real was a big game for us,” Becker said. “Anytime we play a team from the West Valley or Marine League, those teams are held in such high regard.

“We’re trying to change everyone’s attitude about us.”

Kennedy captured the 2010 City final and has advanced to the final in 2007 and 2012.

“Our hitting sets us apart,” Becker said. “In past years, we’ve had 4-5 good hitters, and you could count on them, and the rest of the team would just try to make contact.

“This year I have 10-12 players who can hit the ball. My biggest problem is figuring out out which 10 to put in the lineup, but that’s a good problem to have.”

Becker faces a similar conundrum with his pitching staff.

Though Becker said his staff goes six deep, it is becoming increasingly clear that Rincon, a freshman, and Martinez, a Chatsworth transfer who became eligible April 3, are emerging as a potent 1-2 punch.

Rincon displays pinpoint control while Martinez provides a completely different look with her speed her left-handed delivery.

Sometimes they will trade off starts. Sometimes they will split games. But both are giving Kennedy’s big bats a chance to win games.

“Aliyah has had such an impact on our team, especially being only a freshman,” Larios said. “Then we can bring in a lefty like Adreana, other teams are like ‘Whoa.’ It’s been great.”

Both have bought into their roles.

“Whatever is best for the team,” Rincon said. “When Adreana was able to pitch for us, it was such a relief. I know we have another ace in the hole.”

The Kennedy inclusiveness helped Martinez transition from Chatsworth to Kennedy, particularly after sitting out the first month of the season serving her sit-out penalty.

“At first, I was kind of nervous, but these girls have always been on my side,” Martinez said.

The chemistry has been natural for Kennedy.

In Las Vegas, they came together for a dinner at Olive Garden and enjoyed the camaraderie, but then went their separate ways.

Some to the Strip. Others to Fremont Street.

“We’re close enough where we don’t have to be with each other all the time,” Larios said. “We don’t force anything.”

Kennedy will certainly be on the same page when it begins its “Rivalry Week” that includes today’s first-place showdown with San Fernando and Thursday’s rivalry matchup with Sylmar.

They just want to keep the positive vibes going.

“Vegas showed how impactful we can be as a team,” Mejia said. “Honestly the whole experience bonded us on and off the field. Our hitting has been good. Timely hits win games. We have confidence up and down the lineup.”

And Kennedy has been thinking big from the outset.

“At tryouts, in our heads, we all wanted that ring,” La Porte said. “In Vegas, it showed that we really do have a chance. It showed just what we’re capable of doing.”